


From the Ashes

by LadyWinchester_7



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman (Movies - Nolan), Batman - All Media Types, DCU
Genre: Angst and Feels, DCU AU - Freeform, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Relationships, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Movie 3: Dark Knight Rises (2012), dcu - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-13
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-06-26 16:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15666840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyWinchester_7/pseuds/LadyWinchester_7
Summary: All Eliana ever wanted was to just enjoy her life with her sister and father. But when a certain well known terrorist and his league come to her small town to collect on a debt, it turns her world upside down.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Bane/ Original Female Character. Kinda a slow start, but just to set up backstory. Post Dark Knight Rises. If you don't like the idea of Bane being a human being or sympathetic towards others then scroll along past this story. I have no claim to any of the characters from the DCU movies. I may own my OC's, but then again they run amok in my head, so who knows. I also want to blame Tom Hardy and his lovely portrayal of Bane for putting this idea in my head that wouldn't leave until I wrote it. Sexy bastard. 
> 
> Also, this is my first fic on AO3, please be patient as I am still getting used to this site :) and I will most likely post individual warnings on each chapter if it contains any mature material. Thank you for reading my story, and enjoy!

Chapter 1

 

Eliana stepped out into the chilly night and breathed in the smells that surrounded her; pine, cedar, wet earth, and fresh snow. The ground had accumulated at least another inch of the fluffy white stuff in the last hour, since she had last checked; and she debated on even going into work tonight.

 

Montana in winter time was never easy, but with somewhat decent four wheel drive and caution to surroundings, it wasn’t so bad. At least that is what Eliana had come to terms with.

 

Since moving here seven years ago with her father, and her sister Vanessa, life had been all about adjusting to the quiet and learning to love where you are, and making home more about family and not just where you are at physically. Her father had taken a more laid back job in his field of work, astronomy, just to take care of the girls and was doing his best to provide for them. But being a research analyst for NASA out in the boonies didn’t offer much, but enough for them to pay the bills.

 

Technically, Vanessa wasn’t her biological sister. She was Eliana’s cousin who was adopted by her father thirteen years ago; but Eliana loved her like she was her baby sister and protected her all the same. She was devoted to Vanessa and her father, and would move heaven and earth to make life easier and almost perfect for them.

 

That’s why she currently worked the night shift down at the hospital in town. It was a rather small hospital, since where they lived was only a town just short of two-thousand people. Just one doctor, three nurses, and Eliana, who wasn’t a nurse per se, but she helped with the basics whenever someone would come in.

 

She had wanted to attend med school, but with needing to stay at home to take care of Vanessa and her father, this was as good as she could get for the time being. Also, Doctor Safar did everything he was able to in his down time to teach Eliana medical terminology, and different techniques, just in case there was ever an emergency, or an unfortunate accident with the town’s lumber mill. She felt blessed to have him be so kind to do this for her, and he also knew the obligations she was under at home.

 

Having to raise her cousin from the age of thirteen, and keep her dad from falling apart after losing so much; sometimes Eliana felt that there was little time for what she wanted, but she understood and she also loved her little family, so she was happy with how her life was going for the time being.

 

Eliana turned as she heard the back door open and Vanessa stepped out onto the porch,

 

“You think they will cancel school tomorrow” she asked.

“If it keeps this up they might, but I doubt it; and don’t even think about skipping. You need to have perfect attendance if you want to qualify for the scholarship next year” Eliana replied.

“I know, I know, jeez you act like I’m a big slacker or something”

“I just want you to be able to have all the opportunities that you can get; you’re brilliant and have so much potential.” Eliana reminded her.

“So do you Eli. You don’t have to stay here for us, you know.”

 

“Oh, yes I do! If I leave, you and daddy would eat nothing but frozen pizzas, and the laundry would never get done, and then you would have nothing to wear; and the two of you would run around smelly or naked. I don’t think anyone would want to deal with that.”

“Touché” Vanessa agreed.

 

They laughed at the thought of running around naked in the Montana wilderness.

 

“Okay, I need to leave in ten minutes. Dinner is in the oven and should be done in twenty. After, you pull it out let it set for at least five minutes or you will burn your mouth again” Eli informed.

“Yes, mom.” Vanessa exasperated.

“Aww is my little Nessie monster getting hangry?”

“Dammit Eli, I asked you to stop calling me that!”

“Hey, language young one.”

 

“What, I’ve heard you say worse when you are frustrated or like that time last week when you rammed your foot into the coffee table. A certain ‘see you next Tuesday’ was screamed at that poor piece of furniture.” Vanessa teased.

 

“Yeah, well I’m ten years older than you, and have had more life experience to use such phrases.”

 

“Mhmm sure” quipped the sixteen year old. “You’re what, living proof that dinosaurs once roamed the Earth and can tell me how the universe came into existence? Maybe this is why you can never get a date.” she joked. “Thanks for reminding me” Eli sighed

“I only tease, sweet sister.”

“Sure you do” Eliana smiled, and then playfully pushed her sister back towards the house to go back inside.

 

They walked down the hall and into the kitchen. Vanessa began setting the table for dinner, while Eliana made some coffee and grabbed a Lean Cuisine frozen meal for her lunch later that night. Their father joined them about a minute later.

 

“Dinner smells amazing, what’s cooking?” He inquired

“Baked chicken tetrazzini,” Vanessa chimed in, “Eli is such a good cook.”

“Of course my little stardust is.” Their father complimented

 

“Thanks, daddy.” Eliana replied with a smile. She had always loved his nickname for her. She had been his stardust since before she could remember. Vanessa had adopted the nickname of Nessie monster when she was little due to the little tantrums she would throw when she wouldn’t get her way and when she was hungry. Much to her disdain, the nickname stuck.

 

“Alrighty, I’m off to work; I love you both and hope you keep safe and warm tonight.” Eliana announced as she grabbed her things, and hugged and kissed both her father and sister goodbye for the night.

“If I’m lucky, I should be back by seven tomorrow morning, and if the roads stay clear through the night.”

 

“Be safe, stardust; and keep an eye out for black ice on the road” her father warned

“Yes daddy, I always am. Love you guys!”

“We love you too!”

 

Eliana headed out the front door and over to her car, a crossover SUV. She let the car warm up a bit and headed into town for her night shift. Twelve hour shift in a small and quiet town usually meant a long night of absolute nothing. She was thrilled… not. Well, at least she could study some more of the new medical book Doctor Safar had just gotten in for her, if they had no one in tonight.

 

******

 

Half way to work she saw headlights approaching from behind her, and they were coming up awfully fast. For half a second she thought the approaching vehicle was going to run her off the road, but they quickly moved into the other lane to pass her.

 

As the vehicle passed, Eli noticed that it was a military humvee; which was unusual since the only military base in the state was over three hours away and in the opposite direction. Unless there was some kind of training event going on over at the airport that was thirty minutes outside of town that she wasn’t aware of; Eli mused to herself. Well, at least they didn’t run me over, she thought while continuing on her drive to work.

 

Upon arriving at the hospital and parking her car, to say the scene that lay before her was utter chaos would be an understatement.

 

The same humvee that had passed her earlier had been haphazardly parked right in front the hospital entrance, with all the doors to the vehicle left open. As Eliana approached the entryway she noticed in the humvee that there were bloody rags and what looked like several vaccine bottles but shaped a little differently, almost like small injectors.

 

What in the hell Eli thought to herself.

 

As she walked into the hospital, the waiting room and receiving desk were completely empty. She was also hearing voices and yelling coming from the trauma room; and they were not speaking English.

 

Eliana very quickly went over to the nurses’ station that was behind the receiving desk to throw her coat down and purse into the desk drawer that she and her co-workers used to store their personal things. She didn’t see Tricia or Stacey, the on duty RN’s for tonight’s shift, anywhere, and she tried not to panic.

 

“Ok, don’t panic, don’t over think,” Eli told herself. “Something must have happened at the airport and with the military; it’s not as bad as you think. It’s going to be ok.”

 

Not even a second later a man in what looked like tactical gear came out of the trauma room and approached the nurses’ station. He was also carrying an assault rifle, Eli noticed.

 

“Oh my god.” Eli gasped.

 

Apparently the man hadn’t been paying attention and was as shocked as Eli was, at the fact that someone else was there.

 

He immediately raised his rifle and aimed it at Eli and began shouting at her.

 

“What are you doing here? Who are you? Move, and I will not hesitate to shoot you!”

 

Eli threw her arms up and did her best not to freak out. “My name is Eliana, I work here, I just got here two minutes ago. Oh god, please don’t shoot me.” she squeaked out the last bit.

 

The man seemed to be processing her words, but still had his gun leveled at her.

 

“I believe you, but you need to leave, you shouldn’t be here.”

“Why”, Eli inquired, “What the hell is going on, if someone is hurt I can help.”

“We don’t fucking want your help.” The man spat at her.

“Wha..”

 

“Eliana! Oh thank god you are here; I need you in here quickly,” Doctor Safar, came out of the trauma room and exclaimed.

 

The man with the assault rifle looked to Doctor Safar, and began arguing with him in what Eli assumed was the doctor’s native tongue, Egyptian. This continued for a few seconds before Safar changed back to English and shouted, “Enough Barsad! She is the only one aside from myself who came in tonight and I need her to help, unless you want him to die!”

 

The man, Barsad, lowered his rifle, and Eli lowered her arms, tension still hanging in the air thickly.

 

“Eliana, please. It will be alright.” Safar persuaded. “I need you to quickly get dressed for trauma and come in to the room; just like we have practiced before.”

 

Eli nodded, and went to get on a surgical gown and gloves, all while trying to swallow her fear. She noticed a few more men with guns had stepped out of the trauma room to see what was happening between Doctor Safar and Barsad. Breathe, she mentally told herself; just breathe, slow, controlled, don’t panic…. Yeah right, there were men with guns who had taken over hospital! How the fuck was she supposed to stay calm!

 

As she got dressed the man called Barsad watched her every move like a hawk. Or maybe a vulture in this case. He definitely gave her the chills, and not the good kind. It was like being stared at by a wall of ice and fire; completely emotionless except for anger and rage.

 

When she finished dressing she stepped into the trauma room with Barsad right on her heels.

 

The sight before her, suddenly made her freeze in her tracks, making Barsad run right into her; which she didn’t notice because she was too pre-occupied looking at the man before her, on the trauma bed.

 

It took all of half a second for her to realize what was going on, the man lying in front of her was none other than the masked terrorist known as Bane. This is the man who had been holding Gotham City hostage for the last three months. The man who had threatened thousands of lives with a nuclear weapon. The man who had snapped the neck of an innocent scientist right on live television for the whole world to see. Bane.

 

Eliana felt her stomach drop right out from under her; it reminded of the time she, her sister, and father had gone to an amusement park one summer, and ridden on one of those pit-fall rides; the kind that leaves your stomach and all other senses hundreds of feet in the air while you plummet to the ground. It felt like that.

 

Barsad brought her back to her senses by shoving her out of his way as he walked over to Bane’s side; next to the vital monitors. The machines were throwing a fit, because Bane’s vital signs were all over the place.

 

“I think we gave him too much Venom, his heart rate is accelerating too fast, we are going to lose him.” Barsad muttered to Safar.

 

“If we get his mask off and hook him up to some oxygen, it should help elevate his vitals.” Safar stated. “Eliana get the oxygen tank and mask ready.”

 

“What” she said dumfounded.

“Oxygen! Now! Or he will die!” Safar shouted

 

Whatever possessed Eliana to move and start helping save the terrorist, she didn’t know. It was like adrenaline kicked in and took over. She moved and didn’t think, other than the task at hand.

 

While she got the oxygen tank, Barsad started unclipping Bane’s mask and removing it from his head. Once the mask was gone Eli stepped in to place the oxygen tubes around his head; that is when all hell broke loose.

 

Bane was awake and thrashing around in a panic. Barsad immediately went to pin him down, but Bane shoved him aside in his Venom induced hysteria. Safar had turned to get some more sutures, right before, so he was lucky in being unnoticed by the crazed patient. Eliana however wasn’t so lucky.

Bane grabbed her arm first in a death grip, then went for her neck and squeezed, with his other large hand.

 

It all happened so fast, he moved like a blur, Eli didn’t even have time to react or panic until he was already squeezing on her trachea. She attempted to claw at his hand that was crushing her airway, but it was like unclenching a vice grip that wouldn’t give.

 

That is when Eli took a very good look at her potential killer. His face was twisted in agony; he had faint, yet noticeable scaring all along his lips and large white scars going up and down both cheeks. It looked like his cheeks had been ripped apart at some point then sewn back together. His nose looked like it had been broken repeatedly and whatever cartilage remained had been reset to the best that it could. His eyes though; the color of grey, like a thunderstorm rolling in off of the mountains in summer. They were focused on her; and what she saw in them, she had never been more terrified in her life. Even though he was completely focused on her, she could tell that he wasn’t seeing her, no; he was seeing whatever the Venom wanted to show him.

 

Then Bane’s eyes began to soften, and miraculously so did his death grip on her throat.

 

“Talia?” he rasped out.

 

At the same time Barsad had regained his footing and proceeded to remove Bane’s arms from Eliana. Thankfully whatever episode he had was over and started to calm back down.

 

“Put the oxygen on him.” Barsad ordered

“Are you fucking crazy, he just tried to kill me!” Eli screamed, or she thought she had screamed, but it came out more strangled sounding due to Bane’s handiwork.

 

“He is coming down from the Venom high, do your job,” Doctor Safar said from behind her.

 

She turned to give him a look like he had sprouted a second head.

“Please Eli,” he pleaded

 

She turned back to face Bane, who was still conscious, and looking like a wounded animal. Once again she put aside her internal screaming and picked the oxygen tube back up to put around his head. As she put it on Bane, he was surprisingly kind enough to move with her movements to get the tubing placed on right. When she stepped back, he gave her a nod of thanks, or approval, she wasn’t sure.

 

Doctor Safar stepped back in and began to work on his wounds once again. From what Eliana could tell, Bane had suffered some kind of severe gunshot wound. It would have killed an ordinary man; but not Bane. Eli began to wonder if anything could kill him.

 

Safar had Eli assist in wiping away the blood from Bane’s body as he continued working. Ten minutes later they were finished, and Eli swore that she saw the muscle and skin healing on Bane much faster than it would an ordinary person. When they were done Eli and Safar stepped out of the trauma room while Barsad stayed behind to keep watch on his liege.

 

“Doctor Safar,” Eli began.

“Eliana do not ask questions now, and do not worry, I won’t let them hurt you. You have got to trust me.”

“But...”

“I promise I will explain everything in time; but right now I need to get some things from my office, alright?”

“Alright.” Eli sighed

 

As Safar took off down the hallway to his office, Eli wondered what her boss had gotten her involved in.

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Here is chapter 2, hope you all like it :)
> 
> Also want to give a shout out to Stucky60, she has been helping me edit this story, and giving me lots of encouragement when I need it! She also has a good story over on her profile, it's a Marvel AU and I recommend checking it out :)

Chapter 2

 

Six hours had passed and everyone was still on edge. Eli still hadn’t gotten any answers out of Doctor Safar, and Bane’s men were making rounds and pacing the hallways. Several of the men kept watching out the windows, as if expecting some kind of trouble to appear. Bane had fallen asleep about an hour after being stitched up; and aside from waiting, there wasn’t much else to do.

 

It’s not like Eli could strike up a conversation with any of the men, since they weren’t happy she was there in the first place. So she decided to do what any rational person would do to find out what happened. She went to her purse, got out her phone, and searched for the latest news on Gotham.

 

She found a few major news stories from earlier that day. Gotham police had resurfaced from the sewers they had been trapped in and had taken back the city by force. Some kind of battle had ensued within the city between the police, the terrorists, and even the citizens of Gotham had gotten involved. Surprisingly, several had chosen the side of the enemy. There were also reports that the vigilante known as ‘Batman’ had resurfaced as well. Allegedly he sacrificed his life to save the city from nuclear destruction by taking the weapon out over Gotham bay before it detonated. Amidst the chaos, Gotham officials were saying that Bane was most likely dead and that many of his followers were in federal custody; although his body hadn’t been found yet.

 

“Hmm, wonder why,” Eliana said aloud.

 

This got the attention of one of the men who came over to see what she was talking about. He saw her on her phone and ripped it out of her hands.

 

“What do you think you are doing? Are you calling the police?” he yelled.

“No, I was just trying to figure out what happened, since none of you will speak to me.” Eli replied angrily.

“You don’t need to know what happened. The less you know, the better it will be for you.” He then dropped Eli’s phone onto the ground and smashed it with his boot.

 

“What the hell did you do that for?” she asked, pissed that she had just lost her phone.

“So you won’t get any hero ideas.” he replied smugly. Then he went back to whatever post he was keeping watch at.

 

Eliana bent down to pick up the broken pieces of her phone. She had a lot of pictures on there of her sister and father that were now gone. She hadn’t even gotten the chance to back them up yet. Trying not to become an emotional mess, she took her shattered phone and put it in a bag that she found in the desk at the nurses’ station. Maybe it was possible to save what memories she had on there she hoped, but was doubtful about it as well.

 

Deciding that coffee would be a good idea to get through this hellish night, Eli started down the hall to the small break room that was shared amongst the staff. She also realized in her hurry earlier that night, that she had forgotten to put her lunch in the freezer, and it was now a box of thawed out mush. _Great, just great,_ she thought. _Maybe someone had left some food or at least a snack in the break room_ , she pondered.

 

Eli entered the break room and went over to the coffee maker and decided to make a full pot of coffee, perhaps Safar would like some as well, and maybe, just maybe she could get on the better side of Bane’s soldiers with this. Like a peace offering of some kind, if these guys even had a better side. While the coffee was brewing Eli opened the mini fridge and was rewarded by a peanut butter and jelly sandwich that someone had left in there.

_Better than going hungry_ she thought. She also got out the liquid creamer for her cup of coffee, cause in her opinion black coffee was awful.

 

Doctor Safar came in to the break room a few minutes later and looking absolutely exhausted and beyond stressed out. He saw that Eli had made coffee and began to pour himself a cup.

 

“Eliana, I am so sorry for getting you involved in this. Hopefully it will be over soon.”

“I can’t be mad at you Safar, it’s not like you asked for this to happen. I mean it’s not like you invited them here,” she huffed.

“Well actually,” Safar began; and then stopped as Barsad walked into the room.

 

He looked between Eli and Safar, for a second before addressing Safar.

 

“We need to speak, alone.”

“Right,” Eli spoke up, “guess that is my cue to get lost. Oh, there is coffee for you and your men if you feel like having some.”

 

As she left the room Barsad gave her a puzzled look. It was like he wasn’t used to people being generous towards him. _Or he has some serious trust issues,_ Eli thought.

 

She walked back down the hallway and went over to the trauma room. She stood there in the doorway, wondering how someone so monstrous and terrifying could look this normal. He looked like any other patient that had been hurt and was resting in recovery. _He looks almost somewhat peaceful_ she mused. Which scared her; how could she be starting to view him this way? He was evil, he had to be. _Just look at all of the chaos that he brings about._

 

Eli shook her head to pull herself out of those kinds of thoughts. She decided to walk around a bit to try and pass the time. She passed a few of Bane’s men every now and then, but they seemed to pay no attention to her for now.

 

******

 

A few laps around the hallways later, she was back in front of the break room and was going to enter, but she heard Safar and Barsad still talking. Eli wasn’t one to really eavesdrop, but some of what she was hearing made her creep up closer and listen in.

 

“The rest of our forces should be here in a few hours. We will need the cooperation of the town to regroup and figure out where to go next.” Barsad said.

“I’m sure you can speak with the mayor in the morning. Unless you want me to try and call him and have him come down here now.” Safar replied.

 

“No, it will be better once everyone is here and we have a better show of force. Also, the city leaders will keep up their end of the arrangement, so this shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Of course,” Safar agreed. “You shouldn’t receive any resistance here. Everything is just the same as it was ten years ago.”

“What about the girl that is here tonight? I did not recognize her.” Barsad questioned.

 

“Eliana, her father, and sister moved here three years after Bane’s arrangement. They know nothing of what took place. I don’t think it will be an issue. Eliana is fairly compliant, her sister will do whatever Eliana tells her; and their father is a smart man. He will do what is necessary to make sure his daughters are not harmed. It should be fine. Worst case, I explain to them what we all owe you, they should understand.” Safar explained.

 

“It better be,” Barsad warned. “Or we will have to kill them.”

“You saw how she acted tonight to help save Bane. Yes, she was scared, but she did as we asked. It won’t have to come to those extremes.” Safar defended

“We shall have to see” Barsad stated, with no emotion in his voice.

 

Eliana quietly took off for the restroom after hearing all of this. She locked herself inside and that is when she broke into sobs. If she wasn’t terrified before she most definitely was now. She couldn’t comprehend that the place she had called home for the last seven years was collaborating with mercenaries and terrorists. Even worse, her mentor seemed to be very involved with them as well. Eli thought she had known him well enough and that they had a good friendship, but now she was questioning everything.

 

She needed a plan. She needed to leave and get home to her father and Vanessa and somehow convince them to leave. They would have to just pack essentials and then maybe, just maybe, they could come back for the rest later. _What if they come after us though? We might not be able to run, they might just come kill us if they see me leave in a panic,_ she thought.

 

Then she thought of something that she never would have ever considered. What if she killed Bane? If she did that, maybe this whole thing would be over and they would leave. It would have to look natural. He almost went into cardiac arrest earlier, so what if she could just recreate that? It’s not like they would suspect her if it looked like something that had almost happened.

 

Eli unlocked the restroom door and went to the storeroom that held the medication. She went to the shelf for the medicine that could be administered intravenously. She also knew that if you overdose someone on potassium chloride that they would have symptoms mimicking those of a heart attack. The dosage would cause Bane’s heart to spasm in a matter of minutes and stop functioning; and it would be almost untraceable due to the fact that potassium levels are elevated when a major organ is damaged like that. So if Safar was made to do an autopsy, everything would look natural! Eli filled up a syringe, and headed to the trauma room.

 

******

 

As Eliana approached the room, none of Bane’s men were around so she was able to slip in unnoticed. She closed the curtain so as not to be seen committing this horrible act. Even though Bane was a monster, Eli was still about to murder someone.

 

She approached the bed and looked at Bane. He was still asleep, so this should be easy. She picked up his IV, stuck in the syringe, and paused just before pushing in the plunger.

 

“Oh god, what am I doing?” she asked herself. Eli had always wanted to save people, take care of them, she never thought she was capable of something like this.

“Ok,” she sighed with resignation, “you’re doing this for daddy and Nessie, you can do this.”

 

She took a final look at Bane, studying his features. Seeing him this close up, he was much larger than the pictures and video reports had led her to believe. He was over six feet tall, very muscular, but not in a steroidal way; and Eli already knew the damage his arms and hands could do. She never thought of herself liking this body type on a man, but on Bane it was incredibly fitting. She then looked up to his face, despite all the scarring, he was still very attractive.

 

While she was lost in looking at him, Bane slowly stirred, causing Eli jump and remove the syringe. He opened his eyes lazily, took in his surroundings, and then set his sight on Eliana.

 

At first he seemed confused, but then recalled who she was.

“I must apologize for earlier,” he began softly, “It was not my intention to harm you. I was, confused. I do not like harming women, or those who are innocent, unless it is absolutely necessary,” as he gently placed his large hand over Eliana’s smaller one.

 

Eli stiffened at his touch, even though he was being much gentler than their first interaction. Bane noticed her reaction, and removed his hand.

 

“I am sorry; you must not be accustomed to having monsters such as myself lay their hands on you.” as Bane motioned to his scarred face.

 

“No, that’s not it.” Eli quickly told him. “It’s not your face that I have a problem with, it’s not even that bad, you’re actually rather attractive,” she mentally face palmed at her nervous outburst.

 

Bane quirked his eyebrow at her bold statement; there had never been another woman on this Earth that viewed him this way. Talia possibly had for a short time, but her affections for him had diminished over the years.

 

_Talia…_ Bane’s mind drifted to her, and his soul ached. He had watched her grow from such a beautiful innocent child that needed his protection, to a woman he no longer recognized. Ever since her father passed, her lust for vengeance outweighed all else, even her feelings toward her protector. He wondered if maybe she was the reason Gotham was such a failed outcome. While he wasn’t conscious for most of the final moments of battle, he also was not stupid. He knew they had failed and that most of his men and followers had been left behind, including Talia; while the small loyal few in this hospital had rushed him here.

 

Movement to his left brought him out of his reverie. The nurse who had helped to save his life earlier had shifted her footing, she seemed very nervous. If it wasn’t his hideous self that bothered her, it must be her knowledge of all the terrible things that had occurred in Gotham. Most of them being his doing, all on the orders of a woman he had loved.

 

“I must apologize again. You seem to know exactly who I am and what I am capable of. The things I have done. Yet I do not know your name, and I would like to properly thank you for saving me earlier.” Bane said

 

“I-uh, I’m-I’m Eli, or well actually, Eliana; Eli is for short.” she stumbled out.

“Ah, well thank you, Eliana. You have done me a great kindness by saving my life. In return I will make sure that no harm will come to you while we occupy this town. The same extends to your family if you have one, I presume.” Bane offered.

 

Eli, stared wide eyed at him. Literally not twenty minutes before, she and her family’s lives were being threatened by one of Bane’s subordinates. Now, Bane was giving her his word that no harm would come to her.

 

While she was still wary of all of this, the way he had spoken to her in the past few minutes had calmed her nerves somewhat. And his accent was slightly hypnotic; it sounded Eastern European to her. Without the mask he was much softer in tone, and he was much less angry and gruff sounding. 

 

She wasn’t sure why, but some kind of instinct was telling her to trust this man, after everything that happened.

 

“Are you sure no harm will come to us,” she questioned him, “Because I think Barsad hates my guts. I may have over heard him telling Doctor Safar that if we were not being agreeable that you would kill us.”

 

Bane sighed, “Barsad is my lieutenant. He is just worried about me most likely, he is very loyal to me. We both are from the same clan. You would see it as being like a family of sorts. I will speak with him.” Eli nodded in thanks.

 

“I do mean what I say, and I never go back on my word. You have my promise that no harm will come to you.” Bane told her again. “Even if you decide to leave us, we will not follow you.”

 

Eli wondered if maybe he was a mind reader along with all the other things he could do. Somehow though, Bane’s words were able to cease her worry, and she decided not to go through with her original plan of killing him and running away.

 

“If I have your word, then I guess I will be safe,” Eli told him.

“Yes, my dear, you do.” Bane replied. “As much as I have enjoyed conversing with you, I must rest now; if you don’t mind.” He informed her.

 

“Right, sorry. I-uh, I’ll leave you then.”

 

She made sure the needle and syringe were hidden as she left Bane’s side; then threw them away in the hazardous waste container.

 

Once again Eli was completely mystified at how her night was going and the strange turn of it all. Bane’s men were so hostile towards her, yet the man himself was so different. He seemed gentle and kind. Not at all like the news reports and the internet had said about him. She didn’t know what to think anymore. What she did know, after she got back home to Vanessa and her dad, she would explain everything and maybe they could get out of town before things got much worse. While Bane had been kind to her, and she had his promise, she still didn’t want to stick around.

 

******

 

A few hours later and Eliana was free to go home. Bane must have said something to Barsad, or given out orders, because she had no problems from the mercenaries as she left the hospital. The drive home was uneventful and it gave Eli some time to think about how she would convince her family to leave town for a while.

 

When she got to the house she went inside and heard Vanessa was up and moving around, getting ready for school. She decided food would be best, when she broke the news to them. While making breakfast, her father wandered into the kitchen to make some coffee.

 

“Good morning, stardust.” her father greeted her. Eli noticed that it looked like he had been up all night again, working on his latest research project.

 

She was a little worried about him. He hadn’t been sleeping much lately; and Eli was worried that he was losing himself in his work again. He usually did this whenever the anniversary of her mother’s death came around. But, now was not the time to focus on those memories. She needed to start making an exit plan.

 

“Morning daddy,” Eli replied. “How was your night?”

“Oh, it wasn’t too bad. I’ve been tracking a new star cluster in section one thirty-eight. I had to wait until four in the morning to actually see it; but I think my boss will be happy with what I accomplished last night. Well, this morning actually.” He chuckled. “What about your night?”

“I need to talk to you about that actually,” Eli began.

 

“Hey! What’s cookin’ good lookin’?” Vanessa chimed in as she breezed into the kitchen. Someone was in a good mood this morning.

 

“It’s almost done,” Eli informed her sister. Their father got out some plates, while Vanessa got out some juice for herself. Eli got the breakfast on the plates and they all sat down to eat. Then Eli proceeded to tell them both of her insane night.

 

“What are we going to do? It’s not like I can just leave school in the middle of the winter semester! I’ve got a Chemistry test today and a writing project in English that I’ve been working on for the last month. It’s going to count for half of my grade. I can’t just up and leave!” Vanessa argued.

 

Their father said, “Sweetheart, I understand; but there is a lot at stake here. Stardust, are you sure that you heard Doctor Safar correctly? The whole town is involved?”

 

“Yes daddy. Look, I’m not thrilled about this either, and I know Nessie has a lot going on at school; but this is more than we can handle. We need to go for our safety.”

 

“I agree with you, but we can’t run right away. We need to pack and get some things together. Why don’t you and I take Vanessa to school this morning? We can get a feel for things; see if any of Bane’s back up forces have arrived yet. Then you and I can come back home, pack up and rest for bit. It won’t do us any good to be exhausted and trying to get out of here.”

 

Eli smiled at her father. He was always able to remain calm and in control of his emotions, even in the worst situations. She wished she could be more like him in that regard.

 

“You’re right daddy, panicking isn’t going to get us anywhere. We will take Nessie to school and go from there.”

 

Vanessa went to get her bag while Eli and her father cleaned up a few things from breakfast; then they all went into town together.

 

When they arrived at the high school, they saw that Bane’s back up forces had arrived and a few were there watching the kids enter the school. They also noticed that a lot of people from around town were there as well, and everyone was going into the school gymnasium. The gym was used for emergency town meetings when necessary since it was the only place in town large enough to hold everyone. 

 

At first Eli and her family were going to back out of there, but it was too late. Barsad had seen them and came over to the car. He opened the driver’s side door and motioned for all of them to get out.

 

“Come on, you’re going to want to be here for this.” Barsad said as he took Eli by the elbow to exit the car.

 

“Barsad, please,” Eli began. “I don’t want to get involved, and I just want to keep my father and sister out of all of this.”

 

“I understand. However, Bane has taken a liking to you, and, he usually gets what he wants. Plus, you do well when you work with Safar; we could use you. You would be a great asset.” Barsad explained as they walked into the gym.

 

“I don’t know how I feel about all of this; and what do you mean by ‘Bane likes me’?” Eli questioned

 

“Just listen to what he has to say to everyone; you might change your mind.” and with that Barsad walked off to check on some others.

 

Eli watched him for a moment digesting what he had just said, and then her father motioned to her where there were some empty seats and they took them.

 

******

 

A few moments later the mayor came out to the center of the gymnasium where a microphone and stand had been placed.

 

“Folks, I’m sorry for the early meeting, but we need to take care of this now. As most of you recall, ten years ago, we agreed to do anything we could to save our town from the gas industry that was going to wipe us of the map. We made some deals and arrangements with our savior, in order to have his protection. Now, the time has come to repay our debts. I’m now going to give the floor to Bane, please give him your attention; and to our younger generation, be respectful to this man. He has done a lot for us.”

 

The mayor stepped back, and the doors across the room opened to reveal Bane. Much to Eliana’s surprise he was up and walking like he hadn’t even been severely injured. She was finally getting to see him at his full height and in full command mode; which was much more intimidating than seeing it on the TV. He had his mask back on as well, which added to the scare factor.

 

Bane swaggered over to the microphone and picked it up from the stand.

 

“Good morning everyone,” he was still polite even when taking over a small town. Bane looked across the gym studying the reactions of the townsfolk, and his eyes landed right on Eliana.

 

As he watched her, he realized that he was rather thrilled that she had decided to stay and listen to him. He wasn’t sure why he was attracted to this girl. It’s not like she was as beautiful and petite as Talia was; but there was something about Eliana that drew him to her. The longer he stared at her, the more he realized that he wanted her all to himself, to get to know her better and to protect her from some of his men. He knew that he had to have her, to make her his, no matter what.

 

     


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay in posting, I had some family things going on. Then, got hit with some major writers block, XD  
> This chapter is sort of wordy in some spots, I decided to get a lot of Bane's backstory in the Pit out of the way, and it is intense, lol  
> Also, there are few mentions of previous rape and mentions of a child predator in this chapter so this is your warning.  
> It's not overly graphic, so I think you all should be ok. But if that type of sensitive material bothers you maybe skip over those few sentences.  
> Any-hoo.... enjoy chapter 3!!

Chapter 3

Bane’s speech went on for about twenty minutes. He talked about how their failure in Gotham was only a minor set back. He also went on about the duties that the town would need to perform for him and his soldiers. Places for them to stay, provide food, be hospitable and the like. Much to Eliana’s bewilderment everyone in the gymnasium was very compliant. Bane was a great orator and could probably talk anyone into anything. That’s probably why so many there were listening to him, without question.  After Bane was finished the mayor got back up to the microphone to give out further instructions.

 

While Eli, her father, and Vanessa were distracted by the proceedings, they were unaware that Doctor Safar had joined them and was sitting behind them.

 

“Eliana,” he leaned down and whispered; causing Eli to jump slightly. Her father noticed and they both turned to look at the doctor.

 

“Look, I know you are thinking about leaving, but please speak with me after we are done here. I wish to explain why this is happening.” Safar explained

 

Eli and her father looked at each other, she shrugged as if to say why not, and he nodded at her in agreement.

 

“Thank you, both of you. I promise this isn’t as bad as it seems.” Safar muttered.

 

When the mayor gave everyone permission to leave, and the students were free to go class; Eli and her father went to find Safar. Vanessa hugged her father and sister before leaving with the rest of the student body.

 

“Eli, listen. I don’t know what all happened between you and that Bane guy last night; but he kept looking at you while he spoke. I’m worried, why would he keep doing that? It gave me the creeps.” Vanessa shuddered.

 

“I don’t know Nessie, all I did was have a casual conversation with him, considering what all was going on. I don’t think he’s going to intentionally hurt me. He was rather kind after the beginning.” Eli reflected.

 

“He is still creepy, not like Hitler creepy, but it was just weird how everyone was so zoned in on him.”

 

“Yes, he is very charismatic, and he has definitely learned how to control a crowd with his words.” Their father added into the conversation. “Try not to worry Nessie; I’ll make sure he stays away from our stardust. Go on to class, we will pick you up later today.”

 

“Ok, dad.” Vanessa waved at her family and took off for class.

 

“We should find Safar.” Eli’s father reminded her. She nodded and they started to walk out of the gym building. In the hallway Safar got their attention and motioned for them to follow him through a door that was believed to lead to a janitor’s closet; when actually it held another door that led to a small hallway and another room beyond that where Bane and Barsad were waiting for them.

 

“Ah, Eliana! So glad you were able to join us, and this is your father Professor Stephen Greyson; formerly of the University of Pittsburgh, where you taught astronomy.”

“Yes, how did you know all of that?” Stephen asked.

“I told him.” Safar spoke up. “They needed to know if you were going to be a threat to them, since you have a connection to NASA. They didn’t want you to alert any government officials. So I told them a little about what happened to you in Pittsburgh and the unfortunate accident with your family thirteen years ago; that you haven’t really trusted the authorities since then.”

 

“You had no right giving out that information. We trusted you in confidence.” Stephen began to shout.

 

“Professor, please, now is not the time for hostility.” Bane interjected. “Safar only told us the necessary details. You have our sympathies for the tragedy that took your family. No one should have to suffer what you have endured.”

 

Eliana sensed the same softness that Bane had expressed the night before. She placed a hand on her father’s arm; “Daddy, let’s just hear what they have to say.” Stephen looked at his daughter and his anger lessened; Eli was the brightest star in his darkness, she always had a way of guiding through it.

 

“Excellent suggestion Eliana,” Bane complimented. “And since the good doctor has shared some of your life with us, it is only fair that we do the same.”

 

“One of our comrades grew up in this town, it is his home. Ten years ago he received a troublesome letter from his family that an oil and gas company, belonging to an already incredibly wealthy individual, was going around the town and buying up as much land as possible. They wanted to buy everyone out, force them to leave, and then demolish the town and the beautiful surroundings of this area.” Barsad started explaining.

 

“Naturally in our line of work, we can take care of things like this. This comrade of ours came to me and asked for our help to save his home. He told us that if we did, that everyone would be forever grateful; and that they would repay us however they could even if it was not in monetary means. So, we agreed to help.” Bane continued. “We were successful, and the town was saved. Then everyone here was more than willing to assist us if the time ever came. We even helped by making the town more functional; upgrading the hospital, the school, and several other places in town. Even setting up a new power station and making the town self sufficient for when we needed them to go off the grid.”

 

“So you’ve had this all planned out for years?” Eliana asked.

 

“Not quite. We had thought that our acquisition of Gotham would have been a success. Truthfully, my men and I never wanted to set off the nuclear reactor core. We only ever wanted to give Gotham back to the common people; the city was over-run with corrupt bureaucrats and millionaires who would rather see orphans and homeless starve and die than give up their precious life-styles. The only reason for the bomb was to keep the C.I.A and your military out of our way.” Bane answered.

 

“But what about the nuclear physicist that you murdered?” Eli demanded of him.

 

“He was not a good man. Yes, he was a world-renowned physicist, and because of that many high ranking officials were willing to over look many of his sins for the sake of ‘science and betterment’ as they put it. What was kept from the public knowledge was that this man was a child predator. The youngest of his victims was only four years old; and she is Safar’s great-niece. If you don’t believe me you can ask him further.” Bane said.

 

Eli looked over at her mentor. Several months ago he had confided in her about his family back in Egypt going through this horrible event; and that there was nothing they could do because they had no evidence to show the police other than his niece’s injuries. The police were fully convinced that his nephew was the offender. While awaiting a trial, his nephew was murdered by some of the men in the prison he was waiting in because word got around that he was a pedophile. It was brutal; and the police wouldn’t investigate further, because they felt the situation had resolved itself.

 

“Safar, I’m so sorry, I never realized,” Eli began.

“Do not apologize, Eliana. It’s not like I told you that I was seeking outside help to investigate and take care of that monster.” Safar muttered

 

“You had a way to keep the bomb from going off then” Stephen brought up.

“Yes, we had a way to deactivate it. However, someone that we had trusted our lives to was more focused on revenge than our true goal.” Barsad alluded.

 

“Enough, Barsad! I will not have you speak of her like that.” Bane snapped at his lieutenant.

“She was going to kill all of us, in the name of a man who wouldn’t even view you as a human being.” Barsad spat out. “You were supposed to be her great protector, or so she said. In reality she could not have cared less if you lived or died. It amazes me that she even came back to get you out of the Pit all those years ago.”

 

“Stop Barsad, we are not discussing this here in our present company.” Bane warned. He was starting to wheeze when he spoke, and it was becoming clear that he wasn’t fully recovered as he had seemed to be during his speech.

“We are loyal to you, not the League of Shadows; not that bitch Talia al Ghul!” Barsad fired back at him.

“She is not,” Bane began, then started to cough and gripped at his wounded side. When he pulled his hand back there was blood. Safar went over and lifted Bane’s shirt to check the bandage and it was soaked through.

 

“We need to get you back to the hospital; the Venom is burning through you a lot faster than anticipated.” Safar stated. “Barsad help me get him to the trucks.”

“They all left to set up the road blocks. We thought we had enough time before getting him back.” Barsad reminded him.

 

“We can use my car.” Eli offered.

“Let’s get him to it then.” Safar said.

 

Back out into the main hallway they went, and then out to the parking lot. Once in the parking lot Stephen grabbed his daughters arm. “Stardust what are you doing, this man is dangerous, and you are offering to help him?”

“Daddy I know it doesn’t make sense, but he swore to me that they wouldn’t hurt us or stop us if we wanted to leave, this is the least I can do in return. You know I have to help when someone is injured, or hurt. It’s part of my calling.”

“Fine, I’m not happy about this; but I will go with you all and make sure he doesn’t hurt you like last night.” he responded glaring toward the three men ahead of them.

“Ok, daddy.”

 

They got Bane loaded up into the front passenger seat; Eliana was in the driver’s seat, her father behind her, Barsad behind Bane, and Safar awkwardly in the middle of the back seat. Though Eli had a crossover SUV with normally plenty of space; having three grown men in the back seat was rather comical, and made her chuckle.

 

“Is something about this amusing Eliana?” Bane asked her.

“I just never thought I would have a famous mercenary in my car; with his lieutenant, my boss, and my father all cramped in my back seat. So, yes the awkwardness of the whole thing is funny to me. Dark humor I suppose.”

 

“Well then my dear, I will try my best not to bleed to death in your nice vehicle.” Bane quipped.

 

Eli looked over to him and noticed a hint of a smirk under his mask. Even in pain, he was still eloquently suave. She smiled back at Bane and his smirk changed into a small smile back at her. “Shall we go?” he asked her.

“Right, yes, sorry.” Eli stumbled, then put the car in drive and headed for the hospital.

 

******

 

At the hospital, Barsad and Safar got Bane back into the trauma room; Eli followed and waited for them to tell her what to do. The day shift nurses had tried to help, but Safar waved them off saying that they could handle this without them. They got Bane’s shirt off and Eli happened to notice he was wearing a back brace around his mid-section. _The pressure from it must have caused the bleeding to start back up,_ she mused. She also noticed when they removed his brace that he had a large scar going down his back, going form the top of his neck and disappearing below his pants line. She then wondered what he would look like with no pants on and she had to mentally smack herself. Sleep deprivation was starting to make her ridiculous. She couldn’t allow herself to be attracted to this man. Even though in the short time that they have known each other she felt like he was more open and trustworthy than any other man she had romantically been with.

 

Not that Eli had been with many men. She had some standards. There was her high school boyfriend in senior year, but that didn’t go far. He was a boy who only wanted sex, and it wasn’t even good sex; and after a few months they both realized they weren’t really going anywhere and called it quits. He was at least nice about it and didn’t go around calling Eliana a slut. Then after moving to here to Montana she met Erik here in town. He was nice to her, called her beautiful. She wasn’t used to that. Eli grew up being on the curvier side of the scales. Her weight had always been an issue and insecurity for her. Erik was the first man that made her feel like an attractive woman. Of course, her father had always told her she was beautiful and did his best to make sure her image wasn’t an issue. Which she took his words to heart, but growing up with the world telling you to be perfect and tiny, it was a constant reminder that she wasn’t.

 

When she and Erik first got together, it felt like the real thing. He made her feel special, wanted, desired, and even sexy. The first few years together were magical. She really thought that he would have been the one. He was employed in town at the lumber mill, most of the men in his family was. He was a few years older than Eli so she thought maybe he was ready to settle down and that they would be happy together; and his family loved her like she belonged with them. They were together for three years when they started talking about possibly getting married. Erik didn’t want to stay here though. He always had wanted to leave move close to the city; he wanted to go to law school and try to start his own business. Eli wasn’t ready to leave her father and Vanessa. They had a few arguments about it, and then it turned into serious fighting. He eventually got into a law school down in Denver. They tried the long distance thing for a few months. His family still was nice to Eli and would invite her to family functions and did their best to include her; but Eli could tell that Erik was starting to pull away from her. Finally one night he called her, Eli went on about her day and kept trying to make conversation, but Erik was barely paying attention. She finally called him on it and about him pulling away. Erik ended up confessing to her that he had met someone there at law school. He said she was perfect for him and that they both wanted to be lawyers; and start up their own defense practice. He wanted to end it with Eliana and said that they were never any good for each other. It broke her heart.

 

It had been almost three years since Erik dumped her. His family was still nice whenever they saw her in town, and they all said he was insane for letting her go; but it was never quite the same warm feeling that she had with them before. Eli threw herself into taking care of her family, and working at the hospital after that. It kept her busy and slowly she started to heal from the heartache. She realized that caring for those who loved her back was the answer for healing. Her father and Nessie would always be there for her and she would do the same for them.

 

Doctor Safar pulled her out of her memories when he asked for Eli to go get some more of the larger bandages out of the supply room. She went and got them, and helped him get them onto Bane.

 

“Thank you both again for efforts in restoring me. Eliana I know you never asked for this, but you have my deepest gratitude.” Bane said while reaching out for her hand. Eli took it and held on for a moment. She felt her flutter a bit and blamed it on the lack of sleep.

“You’re welcome sir.” She started to pull away from him, but he held on just a bit longer.

“Bane. I would prefer if we were on a first name basis. It builds more trust.” he said softly.

“Ok, Bane.” she smiled and squeezed his hand, and he gently squeezed back before letting the morphine knock him out.

 

******

 

Safar and Eli walked back out and down to the waiting room where her father was waiting.

“I would like to talk with you a bit before you head home if that is alright. I feel like I need to explain myself and why I have done the things that led us to this point.” Safar voiced.

“I guess, is it ok if my dad joins in?” Eli asked.

“Of course it is, he will most likely want to hear all of this as well.”

 

They got Stephen and the three headed back to Safar’s office to discuss things. They got seated and Safar began his tale.

 

“Years ago, when I was a young doctor, I had a man approach me and ask if I wanted to join him in ridding the world of the corrupt and unjust. He said that they needed someone to take care of their injured soldiers and take care of some of their families as well. No, this man was not Bane. His name was Ra’s al Ghul and he was the leader, or Demon Head as they called him, of a group called the League of Shadows. The League would go around the world, and take down corrupt governments or corporations that they felt were putting off the natural balance of things.

 

I had been working with them for a few years when Ra’s daughter, Talia, found him. He didn’t know that he had a child, and when Talia explained what all she and her mother had been through, Ra’s was devastated. He mourned the loss of the love of his life and didn’t know quite how to raise a daughter. After she told us who she was, she didn’t speak again for nearly two weeks. When she did speak she demanded that we go back and see if her mother and protector, Bane, had survived the riot that she had escaped. Ra’s wanting to make up for failing his family, took his soldiers to the Pit that they had been thrown into.

 

When they got there, they discovered that Talia’s mother had been raped to death; Ra’s had those who had done that killed instantly. They also discovered that Bane was still alive, but he was badly injured in the riot; and the prison doctor had not done a very good job of putting him back together. As you saw from his scars, his face had been severely fractured from the attack of the other prisoners. To relieve the swelling the doctor cut into Bane’s face and used leeches to prevent infection. It’s not ideal, but it was all that they had access to in that hellish place. Someone had also broken Bane’s back during the riot. The doctor didn’t have access to any x-ray machines. So to save Bane’s life he had to cut open along his entire spinal cord to find the broken vertebrae to repair, and then it wasn’t that good of a job.

 

When Ra’s brought Bane to me he could hardly stand, let alone walk very far. I spent hours with the other League doctors fixing everything the prison doctor had done. When we were finished, he was better, but he had a lot of therapy to go through. It took months but Bane was eventually able to walk again. He wanted to train with the League, become stronger than when he was in the Pit. As you can tell Bane is very intellectually strong, and he was physically strong before his accident. He had hoped that training with the League would make him strong once again. However, the pain was too much to bear and he couldn’t keep up with the other soldiers. He came to me one day and asked if there was anyway he could be as he once was. I had been working with another doctor on a chemical compound that would enhance the League soldiers. We speculated if it could be used daily to make Bane’s pain lessen. When we told him of this, he said he was willing to try anything. That is how we created the Venom that now flows through his veins, and what he breathes in his mask. It administers small doses throughout the day to keep him moving. When he trains, and fights, it supplies more into his bloodstream to keep the pain away. This is how he was able to become what he is today. He trained with the League, became one of their best fighters; yet Ra’s al Ghul still hated him no matter how good he became. Bane was a constant reminder of his failure to save his wife. It also didn’t help that Talia was more attached to Bane than her own father. So out of jealously and fear Ra’s cast Bane out of the League.

 

I made the choice to leave with Bane, partly because he needed me for the Venom, and because I felt responsible for what I had made him into. Bane has become a little too dependent on the Venom. We keep trying to find a way to create a more balanced dose so he can live more of a normal life, but it’s proven difficult. A few other League members left with Bane as well. They were tired of the old ways and wanted to help more people instead of slaughtering innocents; and Bane was able to bring them to that. He treats his men as equals and that is why they follow him.

 

When we came here to this town I ended up staying since it was quiet, and I was able to work more on fixing the Venom for Bane. He was more than happy with this, since he wants to be free of the dependency of it as well. I also think he may have let me stay here as a sort of punishment for making him into what he feels is a drug addict. If he can’t have access to the Venom he has to use shots of morphine or be on a drip of it. The Venom has made his pain tolerance incredibly high when he uses it. Sometimes he barely feels anything with it, but using it in the excessive amount that they had last night to keep him from dying raised his blood pressure to a point where his heart might give out. So he has to keep it delicately balanced to not over dose and kill himself.”

 

“This is a lot of information to take in.” Eli interjected.

 

“I know, and I hope you aren’t too over whelmed.” Safar sighed.

 

“So last night when he nearly killed my daughter, you’re saying it was all because of this Venom drug?” Stephen asked

 

“Bane isn’t a bad man. I know the media and the government might say otherwise, but he really isn’t all that bad. He would never intentionally hurt Eliana. She hadn’t done anything wrong. It was the Venom.” Safar explained.

 

“He’s killed other people, are you going to say it was all under this Venom drug too?” Stephen exclaimed.

 

“No, I’m not going to explain all of that away. I just wanted to tell you our side of the story before you both made your decision on leaving or not. And yes, I understand that everything that went down in Gotham wasn’t exactly good; but if you want to understand that, then you will have to ask Bane yourself.” Safar said

 

“I think we all need sleep.” Eli yawned. “Daddy let’s go home, get some rest and we can make a decision later on what to do.”

 

“If that is what you want to do.” he replied.

 

“I agree, I’m going to head home as well, after I check on Bane one last time. I hope you two can get some rest.” Safar said.

 

“You too, and thank you Safar for explaining everything.” Eli replied as she and her father got up to leave.

 

Eli briefly glanced in at Bane before leaving, he was sound asleep and his mask was off again. With everything Safar had just told them it amazed her that Bane was even still alive and that he could withstand so much pain in his life. She was starting to empathize for him, coming from some tragedy in her past as well; she could begin to see why his life went this way. To her knowledge, Bane never had the loving support system that she had in her few friends and family. It made sense to her that someone who had been that broken, found a way to build himself up to be strong. Not only for him, but to be strong for those around him as well.

 


End file.
